Residential
Elegant Homes
DePape Architects provides full architectural services in new residential construction and remodeling. During our 25-year-old career, we have completed homes according to craftsman, French, English and contemporary styles in areas like Shoreline, Woodinville, Duvall, Bothell, Kenmore, Lake Forest Park, Mercer Island, Auburn, Tacoma and Belize in the states of Washington and Idaho.
Chehalis Rambler
This “forever” home is sited on a gently sloping rural site. All of the house is on one level so the owner can anticipate spending many easy years in this comfortable home. The garden and trellis work are already beginning to show the benefits of many happy hours spent puttering in the yard.
Sunset Ridge in Lake Forest Park
We make a concerted effort to integrate each home with its site. This steep site is no different. We were fortunate to work with an uncommon ‘spec’ builder, who is committed to saving trees even when it costs money. We think our mutual efforts and commitment have created a home that is thoughtful and well connected. This fine building was featured in a write-up in the Enterprise newspaper.
Custom Craftsman with Sensitivity
Office and Home in Central America
The owner asked for “something elegant” and “roofy”. He requested a building with the detailing and understatement of a large Mercedes sedan. Years later, he says “I see parts of my building around town. It is often imitated. No one has yet equaled what you have done for me.” Responding to our clients and the climatic challenges of the tropics with excellent design is a strength at DePape Associates.
Craftsman House
Connected to the earth, of the earth, this house balances Yin and Yang, unabashedly. The interior includes an atrium for the cultivation of citrus while providing solar heat for the house. The interior and exterior details delight and extol the virtues of natural wood. High atop the home an aerie is perched to provide views of the surrounding stream and woods. The only access to this delightful room comes from a secret spiral staircase hidden behind a movable bookcase with a hidden latch. This house represents an enjoyment of the natural characteristics of materials and a fascination with the spirits in things natural.
An English Manor
This was an intriguing theme project. The owners drew out of DePape Associates a design for a home that would support their creative imaginations and rich fantasy life. We created many allusions to another time and another place. This affords the owners a connection with their dreams without the huge cost of a “replica.” For instance, many visitors believe the house is twice its actual size and is built of real stone. When we were finishing the project, the owner looked me in the eye and said, “You would never have done this house without me.” What a stunning compliment! We were able to understand the owner and their dream so well that they felt themselves an indispensable part of the design team. Our collaboration had created satisfaction beyond expectation.
Near Wetlands in a Floodplain
This home on the edge of a wetland affords an experience and views of a wild and natural setting with a minimal impact on wildlife. An inappropriate response to the demands of nature pits people and buildings against the forces of nature. With an appropriate response to nature’s dynamic people, buildings, and nature coexist peacefully. The house is elevated above the local floodplain to allow the floodwater to rise around it and flow through beneath it. This design assists people downstream by maintaining the capacity of the floodplain. The home is protected from damage, safe to live in, and utilizes the site well. It is a cost effective and interesting place to live.
Steep Hillside on Puget Sound
Spectacular views and bracing salt air are the reward for ascending the 65% slope of this steep coastal home site. With our “tread lightly” design approach, the house stretches along the width of the slope on standard concrete footings. By not cutting into the hillside, this uncommon design eliminates tall retaining walls and deep foundation systems. The design solution is safe, stable, cost effective and harmonious with the environment.
House on a Tropical Island
This home is built on a small island in the Caribbean. The tropical climate presents challenges unlike the Northwest. The building site is raised to protect the building against hurricane floods. Rooms are aligned to enjoy the view and natural cooling from onshore breezes. Since local wood is difficult to harvest and of variable quality, walls and roofing are made of concrete to resist the corrosive salt air environment, the termites, and the hurricane force winds. Broad overhangs help protect the interior from fading and intense heat from the sun. Although seemingly benign, the right materials and design strategies make comfort and safety possible in a sometimes hostile environment.
Geometric Modern House
The owner’s personality and lifetime joys are portrayed here. My first of impression of this stock broker seemed to be -structured, business minded, organized, let’s get it done. As we got to know each other I discovered his other side- playful, personable, fun loving, open. He is all of these and rich in his complexity. The building exhibits his dual nature with the business like front only hinting at the exuberance revealed behind.
French Estate
A project dynamic in its forming. Currently in the midst of its evolution, its true nature is being revealed. The owner started with ideas of particular spaces to be incorporated into the design. In collaboration, we invented a story for the historical evolution of the house. The history of the house, which is described on the owner’s web page in detail, is expressed by changes in stone and stucco finishes and roof detailing among the various wings. By examining the completed house, one can piece together the evolution of the estate. The combination is meant to be pleasing to the eye and evocative of the lengthy period over which manor houses were often constructed.
The walls built of foam formed concrete are part of an emerging technology as is the rest of this “smart house”. The benefits are the obvious increase in strength, a quieter interior, and moderate internal temperature fluctuations. The geothermal heating and cooling system takes energy from the sun via the tubes buried in the earth. It all means no ongoing fossil fuel consumption, greater comfort, and a lower heating bill. The house blends the best of tradition, individual personality, and modern technology.
Idaho Homestead
An active family of 10 reside in this 4800 square foot home near the Snake River. Much of the Magic Valley can be seen from the “look out” just beneath the copper shingle dome roof. Three foot roof overhangs protects the building walls and keeps the heat off the three covered patios. Solar energy passes through a Trombe Wall for use in the home after the sun has gone down.
Lakeside Retreat
This 1800 square foot home features a serpentine wall of glass facing the lake shore. In the master bedroom the wall runs low and close to the bed, while in the living room the wall rises high and stretches out to the lake. The curve of the wall mimics the shoreline and creates space for a covered deck that would otherwise be prohibited by an adjacent wetland.